T'ai-shang Sheng-hsan Hsiao-tsai Hu-ming Miao-ching Miraculous Scripture of the Highest Mystery Ascending, Disaster Dissolving, and Life

Protecting
Translated by Ho-chi Yuen

Contents Translation Chinese Text Bilingual Text

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Miraculous Scripture of the Highest Mystery Ascending, Disaster Dissolving, and Life Protecting At the time, The Original Universal Lord was in the Forest of the Seven Treasures, and inside the Palace of the Five Luminaries. He was with the infinite number of holy ones, radiating infinite light, illuminating the infinite number of worlds, observing the infinite number of living beings, who are suffering infinite pain and worries: Roving about in the worlds, reincarnating between life and death, floating on the river of sensual love, drifting in the sea of desires, sunk in the pleasures of the senses, confused by the questions of being and non-being: no emptiness or emptiness? No form or form? Non-non-being or non-being? Being or non-being? Thus they are ultimately in darkness. They cannot luminate themselves, and they are still in a state of confusion and doubt. The [Original] Universal Lord then said: All you living beings, [you] find being in no being, non-being in non-nonbeing, form in no form, and emptiness in no emptiness; [you consider] non-being as being, non-non-being as nonbeing, non-form as form, and non-emptiness as emptiness. Emptiness is just emptiness, but emptiness is not absolute emptiness; form is just form, but form is not absolute form; so emptiness is form, and so form is emptiness. If you can understand that emptiness is not really emptiness, and form is not really form, such a state of mind is called "fully luminated," and you can then begin to attain the Miraculous Message. Knowing the Way of No-Emptiness, you can observe all phenomena without obstacles, enter all of the miraculous doors, and by your own accord achieve realization. You can be free from all the webs of doubt, and detach from your perceptive fixation on "emptiness". You can cleanse the six senses, and sever all evil obstacles. I now teach you these Miraculous Scriptures, which is called "Life Protection," in order to deliver all living beings, so they can honor it no matter where they are. Teach it to the world, and it will be read and chanted widely. When that occurs, the heavenly spiritual kings, the evil-destroying Jin Gang, the Fa protecting spiritual children, the sufferer-rescuing true immortals, the fierce beasts with radiant eyes, and all of the hundreds and hundreds of billions of beings, will gather together to protect these Scriptures, defend it anywhere they are, and deliver all the living beings, so that they can be free of all corruptions. At the time, The [Original] Universal Lord said this hymn: You look but do not see me, You listen but do not hear [me]; Depart from all extremes, This is called the Miraculous Way (Tao).

 T'ai-shang Sheng-hsan Hsiao-tsai Hu-ming Miao-ching Punctuated Text

 Miraculous Scripture of the Highest Mystery Ascending, Disaster Dissolving, and Life Protecting At the time, The Original Universal Lord was in the Forest of the Seven Treasures, and inside the Palace of the Five Luminaries. He was with the infinite number of holy ones, radiating infinite light, illuminating the infinite number of worlds, observing the infinite number of living beings, who are suffering infinite pain and worries: Roving about in the worlds, reincarnating between life and death, floating on the river of sensual love, drifting in the sea of desires, sunk in the pleasures of the senses, confused by the questions of being and non-being: no emptiness or emptiness? No form or form? Non-non-being or non-being? Being or non-being? Thus they are ultimately in darkness. They cannot luminate themselves, and they are still in a state of confusion and doubt. The [Original] Universal Lord then said: All you living beings, [you] find being in no being, non-being in non-nonbeing, form in no form, and emptiness in no emptiness; [you consider] non-being as being, non-non-being as non-being, non-form as form, and non-emptiness as emptiness. Emptiness is just emptiness, but emptiness is not absolute emptiness; form is just form, but form is not absolute form; so emptiness is form, and so form is emptiness. If you can understand that emptiness is not really emptiness, and form is not really form, such a state of mind is called "fully luminated," and you can then begin to attain the Miraculous Message. Knowing the Way of No-Emptiness, you can observe all phenomena without obstacles, enter all of the miraculous doors, and by your own accord achieve realization. You can be free from all the webs of doubt, and detach from your perceptive fixation on "emptiness". You can cleanse the six senses, and sever all evil obstacles. I now teach you these Miraculous Scriptures, which is called "Life Protection," in order to deliver all living beings, so they can honor it no matter where they are. Teach it to the world, and it will be read and chanted widely.

 When that occurs, the heavenly spiritual kings, the evil-destroying Chin-kang [Vajra], the Fa [Dharma] protecting spiritual children, the sufferer-rescuing true immortals, the fierce beasts with radiant eyes, and all of the hundreds and hundreds of billions of beings, will gather together to protect these Scriptures, defend it anywhere they are, and deliver all the living beings, so that they can be free of all corruptions. At the time, The [Original] Universal Lord said this hymn: You look but do not see me, You listen but do not hear [me]; Depart from all extremes, This is called the Miraculous Way (Tao).